It's hard to find someone who knows where the tradition came from.
It came from Norm Carlson, a lifetime NASA launch controller who retired in 1995. Carlson, who still lives in Florida and stays active in NASA activities, explained the tradition's humble origins.
"It started with STS-1, the first shuttle mission," he said. "I brought a crockpot, maybe a gallon, to feed my co-workers in the office. "The next launch, I brought two crockpots. Now they make 60 gallons."
Why beans? Carlson just chuckles. "Everybody loves beans," he said.
Carlson started working for NASA in 1960 right after graduating from Oklahoma State. He was the Launch Vehicle Test Coordinator for every one of the Apollo missions, and NASA Test Coordinator for the shuttle missions until his retirement. The two roles involved daily testing routines whenever a mission was being prepared, and became an integrated part of the countdown as a launch approached.
As the beans tradition grew, Carlson and colleague Bob Harris started shopping around at flea markets for 18-gallon slow-cookers to feed the masses. Now the building's cafeteria is in charge, and serves ham along with the cornbread and beans, Buckingham said. Several hundred people attend, including any visiting VIPs, once the shuttle reaches orbit and Houston Space Center takes over flight operations.
Probably the ceremony's most poignant moment came in 1988, when the Discovery became the first shuttle to launch after the doomed Challenger exploded in 1986. Then, the beans had gone uneaten. But as the Discovery roared away, Carlson held up a sign that his wife had made up the night before.
"Go, beans, Go!" it read. And they still do.
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